25:6-8
Festus spent over ten days in Jerusalem. Things moved a lot more slowly in those days than they do now. Even during the second world war, things moved more slowly. He then returned to Caesarea and Paul was summoned to come before him. Festus would want to know what this potential source of trouble was all about. The Jews were there as well making their various accusations. These accusations were serious, but without proof. Paul answered for himself, showing that he had offended neither the Law, the temple nor Caesar.
25:9-12
Festus, like Pilate before him, was ruled by political pragmatism. He wanted to do the Jews a favour, so that his governorship could get off to a good start, and not be started by a spate of riots! So he invited Paul to go to Jerusalem. We might think this is an odd way to behave, a prisoner does not, on the whole, usually have much say in when and where a trial will take place. The reason for this is that Paul is a Roman citizen, so he has to be treated with care.
Paul knew what the Jews were up to, he also knew that God’s plan for him was that he should go to Rome. So he admitted the seriousness of the charges (ie they merited death). A Roman citizen could appeal to Caesar, but this was usually done after a guilty verdict, not before. So Paul’s appeal was somewhat unusual. This is why Festus conferred with the council, he needed advice and what to do in the light of this unusual request. It was decided that Paul should indeed go to Caesar.
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